“Let’s get the team together and spend some time brainstorming new initiatives for the coming year.”
This type of statement and planning is done ubiquitously in our work. Advancement professionals brainstorm a lot.
But, it turns out, the concept of getting groups of people together to creatively come up with new ideas – i.e., “brainstorming” – doesn’t work.
The reasons brainstorming doesn’t produce the results we would hope are pretty straightforward:
- Some people in groups will loaf. Social loafing is the notion that some participants will behave lazily and be content with letting other people do all the heavy lifting. Think back to your college days and those ‘group projects.’
- Some people forget. In a group setting, you should participate by sharing your thoughts and also by actively listening to others. Many of our ideas will be forgotten while other people are sharing and we are listening.
- Some people lack confidence. Even though the ground rules of brainstorming are that “there are no bad ideas,” and people are encouraged to share what comes to their mind, some folks are weary of being judged or evaluated and will withhold their thoughts.
But group engagement in planning is not a bad approach. In fact, if we want people to take ownership of plans we are wise to involve them in the planning process.
A tweak of the brainstorming process, then, is to ask people to come prepared to a meeting with their own, most creative ideas. Have them produce “2-3 of your best thoughts or ideas,” in response to the planning question being posed.
Then, when the group is together, have each person share their prepared ideas. Once all of the ideas have been shared, invite the group to discuss and evaluate the value of the best ideas.
Gaining consensus on the most helpful ideas is a fantastic group activity.
Even if brainstorming is not.
